Romaine-la-Prophétesse
Haitian plantation owner and revolutionary leader / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Romaine-la-Prophétesse (French: [ʁɔmɛn la prɔfetɛs], "Romaine the Prophetess" ), born Romaine Rivière[lower-alpha 1] around 1750 in Santo Domingo, was a free black coffee plantation owner and leader of an uprising early in the Haitian Revolution.
In 1791, in response to rising racial tensions in Saint-Domingue and to an armed group gathered at a nearby plantation, Romaine and followers burned that plantation and others throughout southern Haiti, freeing thousands of enslaved people.
Romaine identified as a prophetess and dressed as a woman once the uprising began, and may have been transgender or genderfluid.
Romaine briefly governed the two main cities in southern Haiti, Léogâne and Jacmel. In 1792, support for violent revolution waned among wealthier free blacks, while formerly-enslaved blacks deserted due to (or disregarded) the peace treaties Romaine had signed to gain control of Léogâne and Jacmel. White colonists, reinforced by France, pushed Romaine's forces back to their base at Trou Coffy and destroyed it, capturing Romaine's wife and daughter. Romaine escaped and continued to preach.